With all the wind we've had on the fringe of Superstorm Sandy, the autumn display of colors has been transferred to the ground. This leaf drop has been going on for the past month, but the storm finished it off in style.
I've heard from family and friends that were in the heart of the storm, and everyone is ok. My thoughts are with those that have suffered damage to property, loss of loved ones, and are struggling for transportation and the challenge of being without electricity.
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Autumn leaves
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Time to harvest Jesse's fruits
We've come full circle on the life cycle of our second Titan Arum to bloom at the Ohio State University Biological Sciences greenhouses. Jesse bloomed May 25, 2012. We pollinated with pollen from two different titan arums, and it worked beautifully well. The fruits are ripening, and the uppermost ones are ready for harvesting.
I documented the growth of the inflorescence and the bloom with this time-lapse video:
I documented the growth of the inflorescence and the bloom with this time-lapse video:
Monday, October 29, 2012
LeVeque Tower Shadow
Downtown Columbus, Ohio. This is from October 11, 2012 - 10/11/12. Pretty cool shadow from the LeVeque Tower on the adjacent building.
Columbus has a lot of cool things in the downtown area, but I'm partial to the historic LeVeque Tower.
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Autumn at Highbanks series
This weekend the weather is cold, windy, rainy and very gloomy. That's a huge contrast to last weekend when the weather was in the 70s and absolutely perfect for showing off the last of the fall colors. Whenever possible, Steve and I walk the trails at Highbanks Metro park - usually covering about 4 or 5 miles of the 12 or so miles of trails there.
During this time of year I really enjoy capturing the beauty of the colorful autumn canopy against a blue sky. This is one of the many beech trees, which are among the last of the forest trees to exhibit a riot of color. When most of the maples have already dropped a significant proportion of their autumn leaves, the beeches are just coming into prime.
Saturday, October 27, 2012
The view from Waterman Farm
Last weekend's fall colors were glorious - especially with a bit of stormy weather and the sun peaking out after the storms. This photo is from the western part of Waterman Farm at Ohio State University. The row of houses is along North Star, and represents the eastern edge of Upper Arlington.
Thursday, October 25, 2012
UA autumn
This is from my neighborhood. Last Saturday Steve and I did a long walk just after the rain stopped and the sun was peeking through holes in the clouds. For just a fleeting moment sunlight illuminated this sugar maple. The stormy clouds in the background were the perfect setting to highlight the fall colors. It lasted for just a couple of seconds, so I'm glad I had the camera out and ready to shoot.
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
Oak leaf and moss
A cool morning with the dew clinging to all surfaces, leaving trails of drops on windows. The light gently streaming in muted beams, filtered by yellow, orange, and red leaves, making the forest a cathedral of whispers. It's autumn at its best.
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Autumn at Highbanks - beech leaves
The colors of the beech canopy were awesome this past weekend. I wish I could capture this spectrum in some of my artwork.
Monday, October 22, 2012
Autumn at Highbanks
The autumn colors are still going strong at Highbanks Metro Park. This was from yesterday morning.
Sunday, October 21, 2012
Autumn at Waterman Farm
I know I've mentioned how much I like living near an urban farm. Yesterday was one of those days that exemplify why. The morning had been stormy, but as it was clearing Steve and I decided to do a long walk. We have these new fancy pedometers, which give us some incentive to make sure we walk 10,000 or more steps each day.
Given how dramatic the sky appeared with the potential for some sun beams coming through holes in the cloud cover plus the wet foliage and ground, I knew there would be an opportunity to photograph a dramatic autumn scene. We headed to the farm and found the spot I anticipated would yield the shot, and then we waited, waited, and waited some more. We could watch where the sun appeared in patches and then disappeared. When it was tracking the right direction I got my camera set up and ready.
All of a sudden the sun illuminated the autumn colors of the trees behind the first row of houses on the eastern edge of Upper Arlington. Stunning light, stunning colors, dramatic clouds - a winner.
Saturday, October 20, 2012
Waterman Farm sunrise
Yesterday's sunrise was beautiful. Steve and I missed our sunrise walk yesterday because he had an appointment in the early morning. However, he was very sweet to call me to let me know that sunrise might be awesome. So, I grabbed my camera and tripod, donned a jacket and hat, and did a fast walk down to the edge of Waterman Farm. It was, indeed, a lovely sunrise. The cows were so curious that they headed toward the fence straight away. That's why there are some cow backs in the foreground.
Friday, October 19, 2012
UA sunrise
This photo is from my morning walk today. I took my camera to the edge of Waterman Farm to get a sunrise pic, and when I started walking home, the lighting in the neighborhood was stunning.
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
Autumn at Highbanks
My Sony RX100 has a built-in panorama setting. One usually does horizontal pans, but last Sunday, at Highbanks, the autumn colors were so beautiful I wanted to capture the essence of the forest from top to bottom. A vertical panorama was needed to do the forest justice....
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
Gray hairstreak butterfly
The scales on the edges of the wings look like small hairs. It's a tiny little butterfly foraging on the flowers of goldenrod. Seen at Glacier Ridge Metro Park September 23, 2012.
Monday, October 15, 2012
Autumn canopy
Sometimes one needs a change in perspective. Some of the trees at Highbanks Metro Park are pretty old and have interesting branching patterns.
Sunday, October 14, 2012
ICM: Autumn
I enjoyed my walk with Steve yesterday at Highbanks. I didn't want to lug my big DSLR for a long walk, so I had my Sony RX100 along. I can use manual settings for this camera and so I decided to try some Intentional Camera Movement techniques to see how it would perform. It did very well, I think. This is a fairly short exposure, but the rapid movement worked to streak the light and colors of autumn.
Saturday, October 13, 2012
Autumn at Highbanks
Steve and I went for a long walk at Highbanks this morning. It seemed like the best opportunity to enjoy the fall foliage. It's supposed to thunderstorm later this weekend, so we wanted to see everything before the trees get hammered by a storm.
Friday, October 12, 2012
Thursday, October 11, 2012
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Colors of autumn
Sometimes it's easy to forget that the colors of autumn involve more than the changing leaf spectrum. Goldenrod is a prominent component of the autumn color scheme.
Tuesday, October 09, 2012
Autumn in Pennsylvania
Sumac turns such vivid colors during autumn. Last weekend, it was the big winner in terms of color hues.
Monday, October 08, 2012
Autumn on the farm
Steve and I spent the weekend over in Pennsylvania to go to the Allegheny Front Hawk Watch site. It rained Saturday, so we never made it up there, but we did drive around the country a bit. Near a covered bridge was this beautiful field of hay bales. I like the symmetry of the rotoballes and the color contrast of the lush green field with the brilliant autumn foliage. The soft lighting and wet foliage was a great combination for vivid saturation, too.
Friday, October 05, 2012
Thursday, October 04, 2012
From Plunderbund's blog:
After the First Debate – The Fact Checking Festival (via PlunderBund)
Last night President Obama and Governor Romney had their first debate. Now the fact checking festival begins. My final thought of the night last night on Twitter… My final thought of the night on Facebook… How does one debate a shape shifter? How does anyone expect our President to be able to…
Australian sunrise
After watching the presidential debate last night, I need an image to bring me back to a sense of calm. What I found most disturbing was the ease with which Mitt Romney lies to the American public. It worries me that people will swallow his pitch hook, line and sinker.
Please, readers, take the time to read through all the fact check analyses. Romney does not offer us a solution to unemployment, medical insurance, medicare, foreign policy. He won't share with us his real plans because the only thing he supports is the Reaganomics that failed us over the past 30 years. Deregulation is not our collective friend. Having corporations decide public policy is not to our benefit. Continuing the economic inequality policies that have squeezed the middle class and sidetracked the American Dream is not the way forward.
Please, readers, take the time to read through all the fact check analyses. Romney does not offer us a solution to unemployment, medical insurance, medicare, foreign policy. He won't share with us his real plans because the only thing he supports is the Reaganomics that failed us over the past 30 years. Deregulation is not our collective friend. Having corporations decide public policy is not to our benefit. Continuing the economic inequality policies that have squeezed the middle class and sidetracked the American Dream is not the way forward.
Wednesday, October 03, 2012
Gray hairstreak butterfly
A very small, but beautiful butterfly that was foraging on goldenrod at Whetstone prairie.
Tuesday, October 02, 2012
Beetles in the park
Spotted cucumber beetles - one of the common insects easily seen this time of year. If you want to see one, check out the late blooming flowers in the sunflower family.
Monday, October 01, 2012
Pretty Emma
Emma is now eight years old, and is starting to get some white hairs around her muzzle. She's just as sweet as ever, and is still the alpha of the dachshund pack, despite have two youngsters who outweigh her by three or more pounds